no power below 2500 rpm

[sirtokesalot]

im prety sure its related to the knock sensor i  have questions though. as the title says it has no power until around 2500 rpm then like a light switch bam it takes off full power. if i unplug the knock sensor it has normal power at all rpm. i did some experimenting and moved the knock sensor onto the intake manifold and with the sensor mounted on the intake it does not pull power away and i can drive the car normally. i do not hear any knocking occurring with the sensor here. would it be safe to run the car with the sensor mounted to the intake? im 95% sure the sensor is reporting piston slap as the engine does do that. i do not hear any real knocking though beyond the piston slap. it is a 2001 outback with the 2.5 i have a small collection of used oem knock sensors and aftermarket ones they all work normally on a 2001 forester i have and have same issue when installed on the 2001 outback.

Edited 2 hours ago by sirtokesalot